I’m here to tell you all you need to know about HYPE, why it’s important, and why you should care. So first off, I guess I should tell you what HYPE even means anyways.
HYPE is most commonly the fancy abbreviation for Hypericum perforatum. This specifically is the Common St John’s Wort species. Yeah, you’ve probably heard of St. John’s Wort before and you probably also know that it’s a noxious weed. Hah! You didn’t know the HYPE was all about invasive weeds did you?! Well hold your horses before you leave, because HYPE isn’t just that - did you know that there’s actually several species of Hypericum and they’re NOT invasive. You heard me right folks! There’s native HYPE out there - and that’s what I want you to get HYPEed about. Now are ya with me?!
Common St Johns Wort (the bad HYPE)
Western St Johns Wort (the native HYPE)
First though, let’s get all the nitty-gritty of the noxious invasive out of the way. Let me hit you with some fast facts:
It was listed as a noxious weed in 1988.
Can be toxic to horses and livestock.
Spreads on disturbed, open, and dry areas.
Klamath beetles work as a biocontrol and feed on these plants. GBCA actually gets to release some of these each year!
One plant can produce over 10,000 seeds in a SINGLE year!
Okay, but here’s the cool thing: there’s a species of HYPE around here that’s native - what we call Western St. John’s Wort (Hypericum scouleri). And we’ve been seeing a lot of it this year! Now let’s hear about this HYPE:
Tends to grow in more wet and higher elevations.
Is shorter that Common HYPE.
Only present in the western states, whereas H. perforatum has a wide range.
Generally just cuter, and grows in smaller patches.
Lucky for us, these plants tend to grow in different environments which means WE don’t have to get them confused, and the bad stuff can still be treated and monitored. So there it is, now you know a little more about the HYPE.
For any further questions or ways to get involved in weed control or monitoring, please reach out, we’d love to hear from you!